dont understand the 1st part of your statement.....

 

I currently own a 1988 Ford E150 Conversion van with either 260,000 or 360,000 miles,not sure because prior owner,my sister, could'nt remember if the mileage had been turned over once or twice when I purchased it from her and title states exceeds mechanical limits.Anyway it is still on the original 5.0liter with the AOD tranny.I am currently deciding to rebuild the engine or replace it but only because I travel all over the east coast and up into Canada with it and know it can't last forever.It starts and goes everyday and is currently our main mode of transporation.I have towed loads 2 or 3 times it's rated capacity.Once on a trip back from Upstate Ny I came across a broken down school bus,A full size 66 passenger International bus full of Church campers sitting in the middle of interstate 79 that runs north and south through the state of Pa.I was towing a car trailer at the time but could'nt leave the bus in the middle of the road so I ran a chain from the car trailer to the bus and towed it to a rest area.I ask anyone with a Chevy Van and one of their 305's to try that,mind you this is the little 302 5.0 liter in a 1/2 ton CONVERSION van WITH NO DOUBT SOME REALLY HIGH GEAR RATIO FOR BETTER MILEAGE and with the AOD tranny.I also towed a 10 ton dumptruck 15 miles and it had a load of scrap in the bed.This engine has never been rebuilt nor has the tranny.It is developing a slight rod knock when it first starts in the morning but instantly goes away in a matter of a second or two.It does have excessive valve train noise but does not burn a drop of oil between changes.The body is still solid not a single rust hole,A couple minor surface spots but no holes.I ask again please show me a Chevy or Dodge that can match my Van in any aspect,from comfort to mechanical ability to body durability.My uncle owns a Charter bus company here in Pa and if there are any doubters as to my claims PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME and I will be more than happy to arrange a tow for your viewing pleasure.

 

What year Taurus did you have? My lousy Taurus went through 3 transmissions before it died just over 100k, plus I had to replace the radiator, and a whole bunch of little things didn't work. The paint sucked and was all blotchy after 4 years, and then finally was put out of its misery when some idiot in a Saab rear-ended it while it was parked and destroyed the back end and rear suspension.
My dad just bought a new Focus (with the good 2.3L) motor and he's been very annoyed with it, and felt cheated because Ford wanted $1k extra just to get a lousy tachometer. He's also been through 3 of the SVT radios. However, since it's european ford, it's going to last a while.

My Girlfriend's 00' Mustang 3.8 has been through a set of headers, new radiator, water pump, fuel pump and a bunch of other crap, and she babies the car, keeps it clean, and does all the maintainance on-time, and the car has less than 82k miles on it. All her other cars have been of Japanese origin, and she's very disappointed that her american car breaks all the time. Quote: This never happens to any of my other cars..


My stance on ford is this: EuroFord has an AMAZING lineup of vehicles, as does Australian ford, much better than GM with its crappy 'opel' and 'vauxhall' brands. However, Ford North America consistently chooses to build their normal cars with a low standard of quality, and continues to **** me off by offering fantastic cars like the Escort Cosworth, Focus RS, Falcon, Transitvan, Ka, SportKa and StreetKa, Ford Coupe Cabriolet and others(one need only to visit Ford.co.uk to see what you're missing out on here in the states.) to Europe, and consistently shovel feed us uninspiring, poorly built junk like Tauruses. I think maybe they do it so that we'll buy their other brands, like Jaguar, Mazda, Volvo or Land Rover. And also because it's cheaper to give us the ***** engines instead of the advanced engine options offered in the UK.

GM makes garbage in the US, too. Where's my Opel Speedster, or my Holden Monaro? Mercedes Benz used to make decent cars, but nowadays, one need only look at their service departments, constantly full of brand new vehicles chock-full of electrical problems, but their G-series models and other supertrucks are quite impressive when placed alongside the high-number F-series models and similar GM models. It's hard to get a car that's not front-wheel drive garbage like a Cavalier from the US these days, although the Focus and Mazda3 and 6 do put forth a good effort. I can tell you for certain, my next car will not be a ford, chevy, or any other US manufacturer. If I need a truck or van though, I'll go to ford first.

Dad chose the E-150 over the similar Dodge and Chevy designs 1, because he got an employee discount thanks to Grandpa's job at the Ford Plant on Terminal Island in Long Beach, CA wayyy back in the day, 2, Dad wanted the extra capacity for his surf boards and for towing the Prindle 16ft sailboat we had, and in general he just thought it felt better put together than a chevy of the same year. I've also driven an 86 Chevy van and it felt vastly different. The handling was sloppy, the steering was very weird and as such it was very difficult to drive. I have never driven a dodgevan, but from what I've seen of the Dodge sprinter, I am amazed you can drive around a corner at ANY speed without it rolling over.

My 85' Econoline 150 4.9 I6 has been put through all sorts of abuse, and made to tow stuff it was never meant to (dodge dart, for one), but it keeps on chugging along anyways. Every now and then, at around the correct intervals, I have to replace an accessory like the alternator, fan clutch or water pump, but the motor, trans and rear end have held up through snow, desert heat, 10,000ft mountain passes, everything you could throw at it, and it just keeps working anyways. It has never failed to start, even when the alternator quit. It's also VERY stable. My mom was on I-15 coming back from vegas doing 85-90mph and we had a tire blow out. The van was still easy to control and we (obviously) were able to safely pull to the side of the road.

In short, Ford UK owns, Ford US sucks at making CARS (no tach on a manual car? come on.). But when it comes to trucks, Ford makes some good stuff.


/rant over

 

...whats your point?......sorry, couldnt help it .....

 

Well we have had several box trucks with both chevy and ford. The last chevy we had a 1998 with 131,000 miles and it was falling apart and we had from new. The box truck we have now is almost at 150,000 miles runs almost like new and looks alot better than the chevy did. The one we have now its a 2003 E-350 6.0 DRW. I like this truck much better.

 

My reason ? Chicks seem to dig the Ford's more

 

chicks dig mustangs. I mean, come on, Nancy Drew had a 'stang.

What chick wants a camaro?

 

I bought my E350 because of what's under the hood. 415 cubic inches of smooth, fuel efficient power. Granted I've always had Fords, but I was ready to switch after trying the diesels and the 460, while a good engine was way too fuel hungry. The V10 gives me up to 16 mpg solo, tows my travel trailer easily and accelerates like a sports car.

 

It's obvious you are too young to have experienced the 60's and 70's

 

I don't if I really chose the E150; more like it chose me. A friend's parents had just sold their house, and had to get rid of the van which was sitting in their yard. They offered it to me for about $600, and since my 1960 M100 was getting a little too rusty, I said wtf and bought it. It was way more practical for hauling stuff than the pickup; I could fit an entire sound system, camping gear, and generator in it and still have room for a passenger or two.
It did redefine the word "rusty" for me; side and rear doors, rocker panels, and even a rear spring mount rusted through. And the brake line to the rear. This could have had something to do with it being driven in northern BC previously.
There were a few difficulties with it... the engine wouldn't idle, and it took me embarassingly long to figure out the carb was loose on the manifold. And there was the dipstick situation, and the leaky radiator, and the power steering, and that brake line, but whaddaya expect for $600.
Oh yeah, and one time this cute girl came up and said "I like your van". That hasn't happened yet with my '57 panel truck. Other people have said things like that, but no cute teenage girls. Although two of 'em once said the panel truck reminded them of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
I have no experience with other brands of full-size van, other than probably riding in some of them, but I doubt that I would have adopted this one if it hadn't been a Ford. Dodge or '50s GM panel truck maybe.

 

I'd agree with this. The reason I bought a Ford was simply because there is more leg room and no big huge stupid wheel well to deal with. The door looks normal, the engine cover is smaller, you can actually get into the back easier and it's more comfortable than GM or Dodge vans on long trips.

 

I've used Ford vans for my contracting business for the last 15 years.I know the pick-up truck category is very competitive among the big 3 but Ford has always made the best Van hands down. Their suspensions (especially 350)handle weight much better as you'll rarely see a loaded Ford van dragging low to the ground and their ground clearance empty always seems higher.My dad owns a tile store and he puts 5,000lbs in his E-350 and it still drives OK.That's about 1,000lbs more than the vehicle is rated for.My previous Ford van was only an E-150 but it took weight so well I once blew out a tire from overloading the truck even though the springs didn't appear to be sagging.The 15 inch tires that fit the 150 couldn't handle the weight the suspension of the truck could.As far as fleet use goes there are 3 Fords on the road for every 1 Dodge or Chevy especially for Ambulance and other emergency vehicles.As a Ford E-350 owner I'm obviously partial but I think the ratio of vehicles on the road backs this up.My 2003 E-350 van with V-10 is a pleasure to drive and with all my tools in it there is enough weight to actually make for a comfortable ride. The truck barely lowers when heavily loaded and I can't imagine any situation this suspension couldn't handle.If I'm not mistaken Dodge has done away with making vans in the last year or so.The GM's are probably a decent truck but their exterior is ugly compared to the Ford.

 

The '98 to 2000 chevy vans are decent. My uncle has a 2000 with a V6 that he's put ~100k on, it's the newer body style (before they tried to make them look ticked off, but same basic style). It rides ok, but is starting to show it's age. It's actually losing power from what I've been told. We chose Ford vans because of my dad, he has an artificial leg, and it's too difficult for him to get in and out of the others.

 

Just purchased an 06 E-350 6.0L for work. I have yet to drive it as it was sent to Quegly for a 4x4 conversion. I hope its as good as all the rest of the E vans we ave owned.

 

215,000 miles 1997 E-150
brake pads
oil
tires
tune up
All original even the battery

Case closed